Having Learned That Red Art Sells Best, These Artists Created an All-Red Booth

Cynical or Savvy? Having Learned That Red Art Sells Best, These Artists Created an All-Red Booth at ArteBA

artnet News | Sarah Cascone

Some people say art fairs are not just about sales. These ritual gatherings, proponents claim, can also help dealers meet important curators, provide valuable exposure for artists, and offer an introduction to clients in unfamiliar regions. But UV, a Buenos Aires-based gallery-meets-art collective, isn’t interested in any of that. That’s why they created a bright red booth for ArteBA, which opens to the public today. “Christie’s says the color that sells the most is red,” Violetta Mansilla, the director of UV, told artnet News. “It’s also the color of love.” Many of the works—and all of the outfits worn by the participating artists in attendance—are the same bright hue. The presentation stands out in the fair’s Barrio Joven section, which features young galleries with a focus on emerging art.

Another point of inspiration for the stand was Brazilian conceptual artist Cildo Meireles, who in 1967 created the ongoing project Red Shift, an all-red living room. In a nod to that historic piece, there was a red sofa in the center of the booth, above which UV artist Emilio Bianchic’s flamboyant Mariposa, a $700 photograph of the artist’s penis as the abdomen of a butterfly, was hung with pride. Nearby stood a human-scale copy of Michelangelo’s David by Lolo y Lauti titled Tecnica: Besos, covered from head-to-toe with bright red lipstick kisses, and priced at $1,800. “This is like our house, the living room of your crazy friends,” said Mansilla, noting that five of the artists actually live together, and that they all hang out and throw parties, like an elaborate-looking New Year’s affair advertised on their Instagram account…read more

Image: Luciano DeMarco, Splash (2018). Photo courtesy of UV, Buenos Aires